By Chris Vannini | MLive.com Contributor MLive.com
Cory Morse | The Grand Rapids Press Michigan State's Keshawn Martin, left, celebrates his second touchdown of the day with teammate B.J. Cunningham.
The Big Ten has sent two teams to BCS bowls for the last six years. But the first season with a conference championship game could be the first in a while without two BCS teams.
While the Big Ten has five teams in the BCS top 25, most of them are going to knock each other out of contention.
The chances of the BCS taking a three-loss Big Ten team are slim to none. That eliminates the loser of the Nebraska/Michigan and Wisconsin/Penn State games. If the most-likely scenario plays out, Michigan State and Wisconsin would meet for the Big Ten championship. The winner would obviously go to the Rose Bowl, while the loser, with three losses, will be on the outside looking in for a BCS berth.
But here's where the situation gets a little sticky. If Nebraska or Michigan win out and end up in the top 14 of the BCS standings, they'd be eligible for an at-large berth and have a better chance than the loser of the championship game, which seems at least a little unfair.
So this scenario could play out: Michigan beats Wisconsin, and Nebraska — who didn't win its division and was destroyed by the Badgers — could go to a BCS game. Unfair? Well, welcome to the BCS.
I hate the idea that a team that loses in its conference championship game could be jumped by a team that doesn't. But that's the world of conference championship games: Sometimes it's better not to make it. Barring a series of unexpected happenings, Michigan State's only chance for a BCS game is to win in Indianapolis.
What are the chances a 10-2 Nebraska or Michigan get an invite? Well these teams are essentially BCS locks, unless there's a major upset: LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon and Houston, along with the Big Ten champ, the Big East champ (sigh) and the ACC champ. Stanford is interesting, because they had trouble selling tickets to the Orange Bowl last year, but Andrew Luck would be a big draw for TV. An Arkansas win over LSU would throw a wrench into the SEC, but wouldn't alter the conference from getting two bids.
So if the Big Ten wants an at-large berth, it needs to root for these teams to lose: Stanford (likely to Notre Dame), Houston, South Carolina, Georgia, Kansas State, Clemson and Virginia Tech.
Some of those teams won't get an at-large berth because their conference already will have two bids, but they would need to lose for a Big Ten team to get into the top 14. Clemson will play South Carolina and Virginia Tech, so Big Ten fans want Clemson to win out.
All in all, having the conference championship game could very well keep a second Big Ten team out of the BCS, but it's going to be an interesting finish to the season.
Anyone else clamoring for a playoff?
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